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My first sourdough

My first sourdough

After one failed attempt and problems with my starter I finally got a loaf out of the oven. I cut the top with scissors instead of using a blade as last time the whole loaf sank when I used the blade, although I think it was more down to overproving last time, but didn't want to risk it this time. I hope it tastes okay!

I always try to put something into my picture that lets others judge scale, like a bread knife, that way we can tell just how big your loaf is. I'm assuming that wonderful rise that appears to be there was actually oven spring (meaning it rose even further when you put it in the oven to bake), cause those little cuts don't really tell the story.

Given how white the flour is from the banneton, versus the darkness of your crust, did you make a rye (or some part rye) loaf?

I still suck at scoring, but those cuts are intended not only to prevent the crust from breaking irregularly, but also to try and get that oven spring to shape the bread into something you want. Often a boule is scored with a square ~66% of the size of the loaf. That lets the top rise up outta the boule to create larger slices. Cutting too deep can certainly cause a loaf to deflate.

As Adri says, I too would love to see a picture of the crumb, I expect its wonderful.

Oh, and I would encourage you to always state how it tastes, cause no matter what it looks like, a great tasting loaf is always worth being happy about...;-]

I used white flour for the loaf, which is why it surprised me when I sliced it that it was quite brown inside. However my starter has wholemeal flour in it but as I used 460g of white flour and only 150g of wholemeal in the starter for some reason I expected the loaf to be white, stupid me.

I still think I am doing something wrong though as my starter has been out since last night and nearly 10hrs later it's only risen about 25%, although it's quite chilly here right now, so that may be why. My OH and also my mum just loved the bread although it really does have a very different taste to regular bread.

I definitely got a lot of oven spring, although it took awhile to happen. I have always read that oven spring occurs in the first 5mins of baking but when this loaf went in I just sat and watched it for about 10mins and nothing happened so I went off and when I came back 10mins later it had really got going.

Have you got your stone yet? (Not necessarily advising you to get one, I just think I recall you saying you ordered one).

I think the oven spring occurs a lot faster with a well preheated, hot stone, than a baking sheet, where the rise is probably more gradual. This may vary though, as all stones are not necessarily created equal, so to speak.

A late rise might be a sign of a low temperature at the beginning of the baking process. Often caused temperature drop when putting the loaf in (a lot of cold mass). Most baking sheets cannot store much heat. (Did you preheat it?).

As Mr Frost said, this can be solved with a stone. If you don't have one it is 3 dollars worth spending. (Usually the gas, driving to a DIY store, costs more than buying the stone).

It definitely looks gread. What's the difference in taste? Would you share your formula?

Looks like you've done an amazing job, for your first time! You must be a fast learner. The crust is golden and the crumb looks fabulous. If it tastes as good as it looks, I wouldn't be surprised everyone loved it!

I did buy a baking stone. Now here in the UK they don't sell them in the shops, least I haven't seen anything other than pizza stones which I thought looked a bit thin. I ordered one from Bakery Bits who are an online retailer and it's really, really heavy which I didn't expect. It's made of granite and is 12"x12"x3", wish it had only cost $3! I also bought a peel and I'm glad I did as I think I would be lost without one.

I have another loaf ready to go in the oven which has been in the conservatory and fridge since yesterday, so will see how that turns out.

Here in Austria you can get them in any DIY store and near almost every graveyard you'll find a stonemason. I know in other regions they use more metal of wood crosses instead of tombstones. Then it will be harder to get the remaining part cut off a larger stone.

I can remember that before my parents had their patio renovated, the even got some different types of granite tiles for free to see which type they want. I wouldn't ask for a free sample if I had no intention to buy more tiles afterwards. But it shows, the shops have and maybe sell them in lower quantities.

We do have lots of places that sell granite for kitchen worktops and floors etc., but didn't cross my mind to try getting a piece from one of those places.

Here is the loaf I baked yesterday. I don't think the lines are showing up as well as on the first loaf but I did manage to slash the top, although my expensive blade seemed to just drag through the dough so I ended up using my old serrated kitchen knife! I then had to go out and buy a better bread knife as the crust seems to be quite difficult to cut through.

If you're going to experiment with scissor scoring (which I love) then consider making a star shape on top using just 4-5 snips, and maybe some around the sides. I combined scissor and lame scoring to get this effect:

but you can achieve lots of different finishes with some experimenting.

Also I have found that pizza stones work just fine and their cheap price is a huge plus. One advantage is that even when preheated you can easily lift them out of the oven with oven gloves and then have the freedom to turn the loaf out of a banetton onto it and score it before then putting it back in (meantime your oven is getting nice and hot again). They also store easily being thin. Swings and roundabouts though.

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